


he's trying and so are they

by ColdMoonCheesecake



Category: Persona 4
Genre: Everyone is Supportive, Gen, Multi, Naoto is a nervous mess, Non-Binary Naoto, Post-Canon, This is kinda trash, Yosuke is trying his best lol, both of them are finding themselves, how to tag
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-22
Updated: 2020-10-11
Packaged: 2021-03-07 15:55:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,403
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26600257
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ColdMoonCheesecake/pseuds/ColdMoonCheesecake
Summary: Naoto decided to come out to Yosuke. It went better than they thought it would go.
Relationships: Hanamura Yosuke/Persona 4 Protagonist, Hanamura Yosuke/Seta Souji, Kujikawa Rise/Shirogane Naoto
Comments: 9
Kudos: 63





	1. Chapter 1

“Sorry, could you repeat that again?”

Naoto sighed, maybe they were wrong in choosing Yosuke? He did tend to speak without thinking but then again... they did choose Yosuke for this exact reason. Naoto wanted someone to be honest with them. Souji was dependable (of course he was, he was their leader after all) but their senpai would just say what they wanted to hear. He was too kind to hurt their feelings. And so was Kanji, he wouldn’t say what he was truly feeling to upset them. Plus they couldn’t break his heart, his feelings for them were too obvious. Chie and Yukiko senpai would most likely be confused and wouldn’t know how to respond. Rise… they weren’t so sure how she would respond, but they didn’t want to come out to her. It wasn’t her fault, but Naoto would just be a mess in front of her. Did not want that to happen if they came out. And Teddie was just out of the question. There was no possible way Teddie would understand them if everything coming out of the bear’s mouth was somehow related to “scoring hot ladies.” 

And that left Yosuke. 

He was brutally honest, with or without trying which was quite refreshing in Naoto’s own opinion. That was something that they needed right now. And they couldn’t back down now. That was also the reason why they had invited Yosuke to their room. 

Naoto mentally braced themselves once again, “I like girls.” 

Dozens of emotions flashed in Yosuke’s face in a matter of seconds, some of which Naoto was able to read. Confusion, shock, surprise, some others, and then again slowly morphed into confusion. But none of them were hatred or disgust. Maybe this could go well…? 

“B-but you’re a girl,” Yosuke said slowly, “so you’re gay?” 

“Not exactly,” Naoto paused, rethinking, “Well erm- yes but not in that sense. Well-” 

If the confusion on Yosuke’s face wasn’t evident enough, it was now. 

“O-o h, uhh?” Yosuke mumbled and started to fidget with his headphone cord. This wasn’t going to work, Naoto mentally cursed at themselves. They couldn’t leave Yosuke to guess everything. 

“Yosuke senpai to be blunt, I don’t see myself as a girl,” Naoto stated. 

“Oh? You’re a boy then?” 

Yosuke looked at them, there was no malice behind his words, just genuine interest, and confusion. He had matured this past year. They couldn’t help but feel proud of their senpai. 

“No, not really.” 

Yosuke frowned, and Naoto couldn’t help but want to shrink against their chair. This is the part of the conversation they dreaded. This was a bad idea, why did they decide to come out? Now their friends will look at them in disgust. They will no longer be wanted in the team and they had to be alone all again. Naoto’s head started to throb as they continued to seep in their anxieties, everything good that Naoto had in their life was going to go away. They just had to want more, didn’t they? 

They didn’t hear Yosuke trying to get their attention. Or Yosuke moving closer to them. 

They didn’t notice anything. 

Until a soft melody started to play. They reached out to feel Yosuke’s headphones on their ears. They glanced at Yosuke to receive a warm smile. Was he going to comfort her? 

_ They say, "Don't dare, don't you even go there" _

‘Oh, of course, he wasn’t. He sees you as a freak now…’

Naoto couldn’t help but let out a tear. 

_ -"This is just a phase you're gonna outgrow" _

Everything that Naoto had pent up just released itself in front of their senpai. Yosuke senpai had to beat them down, did he?

Their quiet sobs somehow echoed throughout Naoto's room. They tried to calm down. 

‘I’m crying in front of Yosuke senpai, I can’t be doing this. Stop being a fool Shirogane, get yourself together. You knew that it would end like this-’ 

_ There's nothing wrong with you _

_ It's true, it's true  _

Shock instantly washed over them and they snapped their head to look at Yosuke.

“Y-you,” Naoto swallowed a sob, “you are okay with it?” 

“Yeah man,” Yosuke quickly paused, “Ah! Sorry uh, dude? Wait no that’s worse, shit... buddy?” 

Naot couldn’t help but chuckle, “It’s okay senpai, but… I like that.” 

“Heh, okay,” Yosuke smiled at them. 

The song ended and Naoto gently gave the headphones back to Yosuke who appreciated the gesture. He walked over and sat down beside Naoto on their chair. 

They both sat there in comfortable silence until Naoto broke it, “You seem disturbed earlier.” 

Yosuke nervously scratched his head, “Haha well, I tried to remember what the term was. I didn’t want to offend you but I guess my silence wasn’t good either. But is the term non-gender?” 

“Non-binary, close enough senpai.” 

“Pretty close,” Yosuke said with a wink, “and you said you like girls right?”

Naoto nodded, “Yes, I did say that.”

Yosuke eyes gleamed mischievously, “C’mon now buddy, who’s the girl?” 

Naoto blushed and tried to hide under their cap. But Yosuke was having none of that and swiftly snatched their cap. 

“You’re not getting it back until you confess!” 

Naoto, having the height disadvantage reluctantly and a little dramatically slumped back into their chair. Nervousness seeped in but also excitement. They felt giddy as a little kid, they were finally able to discuss their crush!

“Well,” Naoto glanced at Yosuke who was waiting like a giddy like a puppy, “it’s Rise-san.” 

Yosuke opened his mouth, only to close it and opened his mouth again in an O shape. 

Silently he handed their cap back and shortly after whistled. 

“Damn, looks like you went after the big guns, huh Naoto?”

“Oh shut up senpai,” Naoto playfully said. 

Both of them shared a laugh; 'this was nice,' they thought. Having a friend to talk to.

Suddenly Yosuke sprang up to his feet, "I'm starving here! How 'bout we head over to Aiya's?" 

Naoto smiled, "I would enjoy that." 


	2. Chapter 2

After ordering their respective dishes at Aiya’s, they both started to chat. Naoto still felt nervous throughout their discussion with Yosuke; this was going better than expected. They imagined hateful remarks, not acceptance, they thought they would be alone, not with a friend, everything that was happening was not what Naoto had envisioned. But here they were, chatting like normal as if nothing had happened over the past hour. They could tell that Yosuke was trying  _ really _ hard to not slip up with his words, especially when referring to them, and that made them relax a little bit. 

‘Everything is going to be fine,’ Naoto reasoned with themselves, ‘I was a fool to not believe in my friend.’ 

“Both Yu and Rise-chan are coming back for Golden Week, it’s lucky that Rise is gonna make it right Naoto?” 

They were on the topic of Golden Week until Yosuke nonchalantly and effortlessly switched the conversation to Rise. It completely caught them off guard. 

“H-huh?” 

“You heard me.”

They could practically hear Yosuke trying to hold any more snarky remarks at them, they glared at him and he simply winked at them back. 

“Well, I naturally look forward to seeing  _ both  _ of them.”

Yosuke pouted, “You ain’t no fun Naoto.”

_ They _ weren’t any fun? Naoto smirked, well they could easily turn the tables if Yosuke wanted them to. 

“And how about you Yosuke-senpai? I can only imagine how excited you must be to see Souji-senpai again.” 

“O-of course I’m excited to see s-Souji again!” Yosuke jumped in his chair, drawing the attention of the nearby diners. 

Naoto internally cheered, so their suspicions were correct! Well, they had to cut their credit short, Yosuke’s crush was plainly obvious. 

“Lower your voice senpai,” Naoto shushed, “ but it seems as if I'm not the only one with a crush am I?” 

“Damn, it’s that noticeable, huh,” Yosuke sighed, “ but yeah…” 

Yosuke slumped in his chair, carefully avoiding Naoto’s gaze. Why did he seem so defeated? Did he not want someone to notice his totally obvious crush? Before they could begin to ask, their meals were placed in front of them.

“Enjoy!” 

“Man, this looks good,” Yosuke said before promptly digging in. 

Naoto picked up their chopsticks and looked over at Yosuke… they could ask him later. Although they already had a hunch on what might be bothering their senpai. 

Barely touching their meal, Chie suddenly bursted in, soaking wet.

“What the hell-” 

“It’s raining!” Chie exclaimed triumphantly, disturbing once again the diners. 

“One rainy day special Mega Beef Bowl is coming right up!” the Owner called out from the back.

“Wait it’s raining?” Yosuke questioned.

Chie, who was drying off her jacket, finally noticed the pair and immediately went over to plop herself next to them. 

“Well duh, why else would I be soaked wet,” Chie answered, “and hi Naoto-kun! Didn’t think I would run into you here.” 

Naoto grimaced at the use of Chie’s honorifics and Yosuke quickly noticed. 

“Why are you so excited about ‘beef bowl’ anyway? Did you already finish it once?” 

“Yes! But I need to beat Souji’s time! He even gave me notes,” Chie said. 

“He gave you notes… for a  _ beef bowl _ .” 

“Well, they surprisingly are very helpful, and detailed.” 

“Of course they are,” Yosuke sighed. 

Not noticing Yosuke’s bad mood or simply not caring, Chie turned to Naoto, “So you still in for the cake Naoto-kun?” 

Cake? What cake? When did they miss something about a cake?

“Did you forget? We were supposed to bake a cake with Nanako-chan for Rise and Souji! Oh, but no boys, this is another chance for us to show them that we can  _ cook.” _

“No no no, I would like to join,” Yosuke piped in, “I will do anything to save my stomach.” 

Chie slapped Yosuke in the back of the head, “ Oh no you won’t, it's going to be just us girls. Go hang out with Kanji-kun and Teddie or something. Right Naoto-kun?”

Rubbing his head in pain, Yosuke encouraged Naoto to tell Chie. Could they tell Chie? Would she judge them? Well, Chie was their friend, they should trust in her, like they trusted Yosuke. 

“Chie-senpai, I have something I want to tell you.”

“Hmm? Go ahead,” Chie grinned at them, reassuring Naoto to keep going. 

“I would enjoy joining you and the rest in baking the cake, but as you said, it’s a girls night,” Naoto paused, gathering all of their courage, they continued, “I’m non-binary.”

Naoto felt a rush of relief over them, and Yosuke reassuringly patted their back. 

“Oh! I knew it!” Chie exclaimed. 

“Wait huh?” Yosuke also exclaimed.

“It was obvious!”

“How did you know Chie-senpai?”

“Well with your smarts, you had to work for the government!” 

They were completely dumbfounded, well that wasn’t what they were expecting. Naoto didn’t even know if they should take it as a compliment or an insult. Yosuke, on the other hand, completely took it as offensive to them.

“Wait, what the hell Chie?!” Yosuke fumed.

“I saw it in my American kung-fu movie! Don’t get all mad at me!” 

“Senpai, please calm down” -they tugged on Yosuke’s sleeve- “Chie-senpai, I believe you may have the wrong idea.” 

“Okay maybe I do,” Chie said sheepishly, “the subtitles were kinda wonky.” 

Finally calming down, Yosuke sat back down and continued to silently eat his meal. Naoto appreciated their senpai’s gesture; he truly just wanted the best for them. 

“Chie-senpai, non-binary, it can depend on the person, but I don’t see myself as a girl or a boy.”

“Oh! Is that it?” Chie smiled, “Of course you can still join us Naoto! We can call it…. Oh! Cake Night then! How does that sound? But no Yosukes, Kanjis or Teddies. That’s better said, no?” 

“Hey!” Yosuke frowned at Chie but he winked at them. 

“Thank you Chie-senpai.”

“Naw,” Chie laughed, “and sorry if I slip up Naoto. I’ll try not to. Oh! And if anyone makes fun of you, just give me their name and I’ll give ‘em the old Chie Satonaka!”

All three of them laughed, with Yosuke laughing a little more nervously. He had already firsthand experienced Chie’s kicks, which most certainly was not pleasant. 

“Ayiaaa! Here you go, enjoy!” 

A humongous bowl was placed in front of Chie, overflowing with grease and meat alike. Both Yosuke and Naoto shared glances of nauseousness. 

“Ooooh, this is going to be great! I’m going to beat Souji’s time for sure!” 

She started to practically inhale the bowl, chopsticks moving at an incomprehensible speed that even Yosuke couldn’t help but whistle and Naoto couldn’t look away, they were afraid to miss something. After three minutes of loud slurping and burping, the beef bowl was no longer.

“Done!” Chie gave one last burp before proudly setting down her chopsticks. Yosuke

“Nicely done senpai.”    
Chie beamed at Naoto and went over to them to give them a hug.

“I’m proud of you Naoto, be yourself and don’t take shit from anyone,” Chie whispered. 

Tears pricked their eyes but they somehow managed to not cry, “Thank you senpai.” 

Giving them a final squeeze, she released them from their hug and grinned at them. 

“Well, I did what I came for, and I have to go meet Yukiko in a bit so I have to go. Bye guys!” Chie waved them farewell and left.

“I also have to go,” Yosuke said apologetically while checking his phone, “see, I left Teddie with Kanji and they are both getting antsy. Figures.” 

Naoto nodded, “It’s alright senpai, you have already done enough for me today.” 

“Nah, I haven’t done anything today,” Yosuke paused, “but I’m also damn proud of you buddy.”

With that, he smiled at them and left them feeling warm inside. They had the best friends anyone could ask for. Grabbing their wallet to pay, they were stopped by the owner explaining that Yosuke had already paid for both of them. Of course he did. Leaving the little restaurant, they could spend some time in the bookstore for a while. It was still early in the afternoon, and they didn’t have anything else to do. As they reached the bookstore they spotted a familiar figure standing by the window, looking at the display of this week’s books. 

“Nanako-chan, it's a pleasure seeing you here.”

“Oh!” Nanako turned to see them and gave them a smile, “I didn’t see you Naoto! Hello!” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy National Coming Out Day! :D   
> also does one know how to take out the previous notes? Lol idk how

**Author's Note:**

> 1st time uploading something here... if the format is wack then oops ;-; (i just copied and pasted from a google doc lol)  
> and sorry if its a oc'ish'. I tried my best  
> I hope this isnt that bad, but I decided to post it b4 I chicken out haaaaaaaaaaaa  
> Just pressing the "post" button is stressing me out  
> I already had like respect for you all fanfic writers but after this it just increased by like x100000000000  
> Soooo, uh yeh (internet people dont kill me plz lmao)  
> The song was The Village by Wrabel  
> pretty lit song  
> and if there's anything wrong like about the terms i'm sorrrry i'll try to fix (but hopefully everything is oki)  
> but theres probs like a million of errors lol  
> so thanks for reading my trash ^^ but i'm pretty sure no one is gonna read it loll  
> stay safe bois/gals/buddies


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